A Full Circle Connection
by seek-to-enchant121584
Summary: Some time after the breach closing, Mako believes that her relationship with Raleigh should be more than a physical compatibility, emotional connection, and strong drift compatibility. She wants to share passion and intimacy with him, as well. The attraction is already there, all that's left to do is act on it. One-shot. Raleigh/Mako


Author's note: I started writing this story awhile back, when I first watched the movie on TV. And as we all know, for those of you who read the novelized version of the movie, you'll know what I'm talking about with the whole male/female copilot thing. Spoiler, if you intend to read the book: Cherno Alpha's crew, S. and A. Kaidanovsky, are husband and wife. The author states this clearly. In the movie, however, it is left shrouded in mystery, and in the bonus featurettes, Guillermo says that he purposefully leaves the relationship opaque. So after some consideration on my part, I decided to leave my story as is. And my take is...that they're brother and sister.

Music suggestions: 'Drift' by Blake Perlman feat. RZA, 'Heart by heart' by Demi Lovato.

Disclaimer: Don't own Pacific Rim. I mean, "hello!" where was the kiss at the end? You all were feeling the vibe there, too, right? Read the book. You'll like that version better!

A Full Circle Connection

Lounging on his bunk, perusing an old travel magazine to Egypt, an ongoing joke that had pervaded his and Yancy's entire Jaeger career but he was now seriously considering, a knock on his door had Raleigh laying it aside to let Mako in.

In the weeks proceeding their closing the breach, Mako had visited him many times. Mostly to not be alone, either mentally or physically. Other times, it was for comfort and consistency. As if to reassure herself that he hadn't left her, as Stacker Pentecost had by sacrificing himself.

As he opened the door with a warm smile and looked at her, however, he knew this time would be different.

"Mako?" Raleigh greeted, slightly questioningly, leaning against his door as his expression shifted into something more neutral.

"May I come in?" Mako asked courteously, her head dipping mildly in greeting.

"Sure." Raleigh replied without hesitation, stepping aside to let her pass. She entered on silent feet, and he closed the door behind her. He turned to face her before speaking. "What's this about?"

Her brave and confident demeanor belayed an underlying sense of nervousness as she moved to speak.

"I have made a decision. It is something I have been thinking about for awhile now." Mako stated in an assured tone, her expression serious.

"About what?" Raleigh asked, because he got the inclination that was what she wanted.

"Us." Mako answered succinctly, gazing up at him. "Ours is a unique relationship. Unprecedented. Never has there been a jaeger partnership between a man and a woman not related by blood. Before the drift, we had an emotional connection. In our sparring session, we discovered a physical compatibility, an...awareness, an ability to predict and counter the others moves. Inside the drift...we had a bond rarely achieved by any other partnership in its strength. The merging of our minds, the connection we made, I believe it is only a natural progression to want..."

"No, Mako. We can't." Raleigh interceded, cutting her off before she could finish her thought. As familiar with her mind as he now was, and partially because he could still feel her in his mind sometimes, like a shadow of a drift hangover, he knew what she came here for, why she came to him tonight. It was something he'd fought so hard to resist the moment he'd laid eyes on her. If she were to want the same things he did, to not have just the emotional and mental connection, but the physical...to be intimately joined as a man and a woman...the fight would leave him completely. If she said the words out loud, he wouldn't be able to deny her. He had enough trouble keeping his hands to himself in his own mind, without any encouragement from her.

"I've seen your memories." Mako said evenly, crossing the space between them. Reaching up, Mako gently laid her hand on Raleigh's cheek. "Your dreams."

Raleigh sucked in a breath, but didn't comment. There was no hiding in the drift, and Mako was beautiful...inside and out.

"I don't want to be in your dreams anymore." Mako stated in an absolute tone, her gaze locked on to his.

If he hadn't been inside of her head just as much as she'd been inside his, her abrupt, absolute comment would have cut him off at the knees. Instead, it just made him flinch minutely.

"I want to be in your reality...and my reality. As one." Mako finished in a resolute tone, her gaze determined and hopeful as she stepped in close to him.

His eyes fell shut, and he surrendered to her as she guided his mouth down to hers.

Their first kiss was light, and innocent. A simple pressing together of lips, fitting together seamlessly. A kiss that lasted mere seconds...but felt like the beginning of eternity...with Mako.

"Did you have anything particular in mind for after you...persuaded me?" Raleigh asked in a roughened, teasing tone when they separated, foreheads resting together comfortably, a smile tugging at his lips.

Mako seemed to glow from within, lighting up her expression as her eyes slowly pulled open, a dreamy smile lifting up her mouth.

"The shower." Mako answered simply, reveling in the closeness...this flowering new level of contact with Raleigh.

"Are you sure?" Raleigh asked after a moment, a little cautiously. "That's more of an advanced class..."

"I'm sure." Mako returned in an confident tone. Taking a step back towards the bath section of Raleigh's bunk, Mako continued speaking. "Besides, I'm a quick learner and I have the feeling you won't mind teaching me."

A low groan rumbled up from his chest, past his lips, causing a cheeky grin to blossom across Mako's mouth. Anticipation began to course through his veins. He could feel the unspoken challenge, and rose to meet it.

Reaching up over his head, Raleigh tugged the standard long sleeve shirt he'd been wearing up and off, and tossed it aside. And then hid the smirk pulling at his lips when Mako quieted...and stared openly.

As he'd said, he'd been inside her head, too. And she thought about his chest...a lot.

She reached out, seemingly subconsciously, and gingerly touched him. His muscles contracted reflexively as her fingertips glided down his torso, reverently outlining the stark scars that spread across his ribcage.

"Is this okay?" Mako asked hesitantly, the look in her eyes unsure when they turned up to meet his.

He nodded affirmatively before speaking. "They're just sensitive, that's all."

"They bother you." Mako added in a subdued tone, mesmerized by the skin under her hand. "You hide them, won't let anyone touch them."

"Not from you." Raleigh admitted honestly, holding out a hand for her free one.

"They remind you of the choices you've made." Mako continued, her eyes meeting his again as her free hand found his. "But those choices brought you and Gipsy to me, and despite the misery they've wrought, I'm glad for that."

Ducking his head, Raleigh kissed her again and pressed in close, one hand clutching hers to her hip, the other stilling the movement of her soft caressing.

A small sound of displeasure was muffled by his lips before Mako pulled back minutely. "I like touching you." Mako complained when Raleigh refused to release her hands.

"Maybe I want to touch you, too." Raleigh countered reasonably, heat swirling brightly behind his eyes. "And I can't do that with you distracting me."

"O-oh." Mako replied in a stuttering tone, having been rather absorbed with her task. She'd honestly hadn't considered anything else.

Everything about him was absolutely fascinating. The hard, tensile muscle beneath her fingertips...the smooth, perfect skin that covered them...the circuitry scars that reminded him of how alone in the world he was... the fluid way with which his body moved as he walked, fought, and held her, despite all that had happened to him, when a lesser man would have buckled under the strain of carrying a jaeger so far without a partner...she was more than a little obsessed.

She'd never had the opportunity to touch a man such as Raleigh. Or any man, for that matter. Never had one peaked her interest, challenged her, as he did. On the other hand, she doubted her Sensei would have permitted such a man anywhere near her, alone, with such intentions.

She'd never _needed_ to touch before. Or be touched.

She did now, however. More than anything.

"I believe that would be alright." Mako said after surfacing from her thoughts, smiling warmly.

Returning the smile, Raleigh released her hands in order to start unbuttoning the cardigan sweater she wore over her shirt.

Her heart started to beat faster as he finished with her sweater and pushed it down her arms, until it pooled on the floor behind her. Pulling her shirt from the waist of her pants, his fingers brushed her skin and her breath stuttered in her chest. Images flashed across her mind as he laid his hands flat against her bare stomach...of him on his knees before her, mouth on her stomach, the curve of her waist, her still covered breasts...

And then her shirt was over her head, and his hands were pressing into her waist, drawing her in for a heated, desperate kiss. A moan escaped as he banded his arms around her tightly, skin on skin, as his hands skimmed up her back towards the clasp of her bra.

And sort of ran into a roadblock when he couldn't find one.

"It's in the front." Mako imparted with amusement after he pulled away in confusion and irritation to glance over her shoulder.

"Oh." Raleigh uttered around an embarrassed chuckle. "Should've noticed that. It's been awhile."

Still smiling, Mako squeezed her hands between their bodies and unsnapped the clasp herself.

"See? Much easier." Mako said in a mildly teasing tone, bringing her hands back down to her sides.

"Yeah..." Raleigh murmured in a distracted tone, looking down between them at the now loose bra, still covering her breasts, but clearly open. Only requiring a simple nudge...

Not even questioning the urge, Raleigh gently edged his fingers beneath one cup, the tips of his fingers ghosting over her bare skin until the cup fell away from her breast, and the rosy, slightly furled bud hidden beneath was exposed to his gaze.

Her fantasy image became reality as he knelt before her, pressing his face against her chest. His other hand absently nudged the other half of her bra aside and held her, his cheek to her breastbone, one hand pressed to the center of her back, the other resting lightly atop the breast he'd just exposed.

"Do we _have_ to do the shower now?" Raleigh asked in a reluctant, disinclined tone, his lips brushing her skin with every word he spoke. "I think I could make a convincing argument for right here, followed by the bed. And then the shower later."

"Okay." Mako capitulated in a breathless tone, already awed and dazed by the fact that she was standing in Raleigh's bunk, both naked from the waist up, and Raleigh on his knees before her. If she was reading him right, she was sure his argument involved removing her pants and putting his head between her thighs. She'd seen such an image in his mind during their last drift together, and it had...distracted her for a moment.

She'd always been kind of curious about that sexual act. She also wondered what it'd be like to perform that act on a man. On Raleigh.

She'd never considered the latter before, and while secretly she'd been revisiting the image he'd put into her mind weeks before, she was undecided on which she was looking more forward to.

His mouth found her breast then, followed by his teeth...and his tongue.

While it was all rather thrilling, the man she cared for most on the planet, the only man she physically craved, loving on her breasts, kissing and nipping and teasing...it wasn't really doing anything arousing for her. Nothing struck her as extraordinary about it.

But then, she hadn't really expected it to.

From the time they'd started growing, her entire body changing and filling out, she'd noticed that her breasts didn't really produce any sensation when played with. Sure, she _felt_ temperature change and touch, such as if she pinched them, but the action never gave her any pleasure. Not even a twinge of euphoria.

After a few moments, Raleigh picked up on this as well. Especially when he glanced up at her and she was staring down at him, clearly pleased with the position they were currently in, but not _pleased_. As in "My knees are so weak and I'm about to pass out the sensation is so intense" kind of pleasure.

Reluctantly, he pulled back. Well, after sneaking one last bite to the inside of her right breast, he pulled back. He smiled when his bite earned a slight jump of surprise. So, next came a gentle lap of his tongue over the bite mark. Then he pulled back for good.

"So, not much going on for you here, is there?" Raleigh asked, dragging the pad of his thumb across one of her nipples as he rotated his gaze up to hers, his earlier smile still tugging the corners of his lips upwards.

"No. There never has been much sensation in my breasts." Mako admitted matter-of-factly, bringing one of her hands up and tentatively placing it on top of his head, brushing his hair back. "But I like watching the enjoyment it brings you to touch them."

"How about we come back to this later, then? When it's my turn." Raleigh said, his hand gliding down from her breast to her hip.

"Is it not your turn right now?" Mako asked, confusion in her tone.

"Not to get off, no." Raleigh answered in a forthright tone, his hands coming to the button of her pants. "That'd be yours."

Color entered Mako's face, and she bit her bottom lip self-consciously.

"Oh." Mako uttered, speech leaving her. Both languages.

"Of course," Raleigh continued as if she hadn't made any sound at all. His deft fingers pulled the button from its mooring and began to ease the zipper of her pants downward. "Being allowed to touch you like this...it doesn't really matter how or where, it's gonna turn me on. You've been inside my head, so you already know what I'm gonna like or dislike. But with you, it's different. You've never..." At this, he hesitated, unsure if he should follow through with what he was about to say. "...been with anybody like this, never really thought like this, either. I wanna get to know how you like being touched. If you like it soft, or...a little rough. Or if you prefer the feel of my mouth, my tongue, over my hand...down here." In conjunction with his words, he eased one of his hands just inside of her pants, brushing his fingers across the outside of her underwear. The corner of his mouth twitched up. "Besides, it's the more gentlemanly thing to do."

"How...very fortunate for me." Mako murmured, mesmerized.

"Yeah, it is." Raleigh replied in a light tone, his lips quirking up again as he slowly pulled his hand out of her pants.

Kneeling down, Raleigh untied each of Mako's boots and pulled them off, her socks quickly following.

Mako's thoughts began to race at lightening speed. Her body image had never mattered to her before. She was short and compact, a throwback of her maternal grandmother. She'd learned to use her size to her advantage, had learned to accept and adapt, without even considering any of her features as a disadvantage. Raleigh, however, was about to see her completely naked. No one had seen her as such since she was a child.

How was she going to compare to the other women Raleigh had been with? The tall, beautiful, _experienced_ women that had preceded her echoed their glorious conquests in her mind. She had stretch marks on her thighs, for heaven's sake, and she hadn't had to have a child to earn them.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Raleigh asked in a concerned manner as he finished his task and rose back up to his full height, sensing Mako's hesitation as he pulled her back into his arms.

"I'm not beautiful. Not like all of the other women you've been with." Mako stated in a mildly grumbling tone, as they held each other loosely.

"Hey. Listen to me." Raleigh commanded softly, his hand gripping her chin to lift and hold her gaze with his. "None of that matters to me anymore. That was a different time, different place, different _me_. And you _are_ beautiful. Perfect. All of you." Raleigh finished assertively, his hand releasing her chin to brush her bangs out of her face, petting her soothingly.

Her eyes fluttered shut at his gentle touch, opening again as a hesitant smile lit up her face at his last statement.

Leading her over to his simple twin bed, Raleigh squeezed one of her hands reassuringly before releasing it, rotating around to face her.

Mako stepped in close to Raleigh once they stopped in front of the bed and began to trace her fingertips all over Raleigh's chest once again. Without much thought at all, Mako's hand continued to glide over his skin, along his spine, down inside his boxer briefs, and fondled. Shaping the round, tensile strength beneath her fingers much as he just had with her breasts, Mako was once again distracted by the sensation, the emotion connected to the simple act of touching someone. Raleigh.

"Will you...let me?" Raleigh asked after a moment, his eyes locked with hers and his breathing hitched halfway through his question, momentarily surprised, but enjoying the touch of Mako's hand groping his ass probably just as much as she was. The erection that was forming nudged against her stomach. If she hadn't been sure of her effect on him, there really was no mistaking it now. He forgot for half a moment what exactly he was asking permission _for_. But only for half a moment. Then the picture of Mako pressed up against the wall, her bare leg draped over his shoulder as he went down on her formed in his mind, and he remembered.

And then his cargo pants became all too tight, the combination of Mako's hands and his thoughts sending his now fully formed erection straining against the fabric.

When his brain reset motor function, Raleigh reached forward and pushed her cargo pants down a few inches. When she nodded imperceptibly and reluctantly removed her hands from his ass, Raleigh continued the downward motion until they pooled at her feet, on the floor. Bracing her hands on his back, Mako lifted each foot away for Raleigh pull them off and then set them out of tripping distance. He then eased her underwear down her legs, as well.

With a little tick of his head, Mako followed his silent command and sat on the edge of the bunk, facing Raleigh, feeling mildly embarrassed with her complete nakedness, in front of him.

"You're gonna love this. Trust me." Raleigh imparted in a low tone and a crooked smile, crawling forward into the vee of her legs as they parted for him instinctively, looping one of her legs over his shoulder.

oooaoooo*ooocooo

"I'm telling you, _something_ happened!" Tendo reiterated fervently to his companion and coworker as they strolled down the hall, taking an out-of-the-way route to the cafeteria that conveniently passed directly between Raleigh and Mako's bunks. "No one has seen either one of them since lunch. Yesterday!"

"You know I'm one of the first to speculate, but it could be anything. Maybe they just aren't feeling social. Some pilots are like that. And you know how Mako is." Andy argued, taking the role of Devil's advocate.

ooooxooo*ooouooooo*

Stepping under the spray, Mako closed her eyes in pleasure as the hot water sluiced over her head and down her shoulders, soothing aches she hadn't realized she'd had.

But then, she hadn't had them half a day ago.

She could still feel Raleigh between her legs, his lithely muscular frame settled on top of her, a delicious warmth and comfort...and the thrill of expectation as he slowly eased himself inside of her, inch by inch. And due to an incident that had occurred in her late teens, there was no jolt of pain, because there was no hymen to break through. Just the almost unbearable discomfort of his penis stretching and filling her as he gently rocked back and forth, easing his way completely inside. An effort that she was sure was pure torture for both of them. She could see the strain in and around his eyes, in the set of his jaw, and the look of pure determination in his expression.

Until he was fully inside her, and they were physically one being. The connection was made even more profound through the drift echoes she could still sense with him. The rightness...the sense of wholeness the filled her, she could see reflected in his eyes.

A smile tugged at her lips as she felt Raleigh step in behind her in the shower, his arms wrapping around her tight, pulling her in close. Shifting around, Raleigh turned them around until his back was beneath the shower and she was standing face to face with him. Ducking his head, he leaned down until his forehead was touching hers, her eyes opening to follow his movements.

"How do you feel?" Raleigh asked in a hushed tone, his fingertips ghosting along the bumps of her spine.

"Sore." Mako answered honestly, one corner of her mouth quirking upwards. "But I'll live."

Raleigh's lips twitched upwards in response. "Good." Raleigh imparted, fighting back a grin.

Even though she'd been expecting him to do something the moment he stepped inside the stall, she still couldn't help the yelp of surprise that escaped when his hands went to her thighs and hoisted her upward, pressing her into the shower stall wall beneath the shower nozzle. Gaze intent, she felt his hand between them, guiding himself inside her once again. Her body bowed from the wall, the now familiar sensation of stretching and accepting his phallus filling her being.

oooooozooo*ooorooooo*

They had just rounded the corner that led between Raleigh and Mako's rooms, another counter-argument ready to leave Tendo's mouth when Raleigh's door clunked and swung open. Tendo's mouth snapped closed and both halted their stride when Mako emerged from the room, her hair wet and a beaming smile of absolute delight on her face.

Before either one could offer up an explanation for their reason for being so off course...again, a hand reached out from inside the room, pulling her back in by the arm. The upper half of her body disappeared for a few seconds, and she reappeared even more disheveled once she pulled away. Ambling down the steps, Mako finally glanced their way as she checked the hallway before crossing. The smile fell away from her lips and her eyes rounded slightly in mute shock.

"You've only got two minutes and thirty-seven seconds left, and then we're going in search of food." Raleigh informed her from the doorway, amusement in his voice. Leaning out at her lack of response, he glanced in the direction she was staring, and noticed their audience. "What's up, guys? Taking the scenic route to the cafeteria again, Tendo?" Raleigh asked with a wave, a mildly teasing tone entering his second question. "That's, what, the fifth time this week? _And_ it's the night shift. I think you're losing your touch."

Mako sputtered indignantly, the shock wearing off. Cursing rapidly under her breath in Japanese, the few words he caught making even Tendo blush and Raleigh grin even wider, she continued across the corridor and up the stairs to her bunk. Without breaking stride, she threw her door open and stepped inside.

A rueful grin broke out across Tendo's face. Raleigh's count didn't include the times Raleigh hadn't caught him, which actually raised the total to eleven. "What can I say, my man? We've all gotta do something to fill our time. Right now, you two are the main topic of discussion."

Shaking his head, Raleigh couldn't hold back the responding grin. "Just hold off awhile longer before breaking the news, would you? We'd at least like to eat first."

"Well, you all have been in there for almost ten hours straight, and we're not the only ones to notice your absence. You should have thought about bringing some food in with you." Tendo tossed back cheekily. "You've got long-term plans to be making, with the apocalypse over and everything."

"I'll keep that in mind next time." Raleigh countered in an amused tone.

oooooroooo*ooooouooo*

The End! Hope you enjoyed reading.


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